One year after India’s Operation Sindoor, China has for the first time officially acknowledged that it was not only providing intelligence support to Pakistan, but Chinese nationals were also present on Pakistani air bases, providing real-time operational support to Pakistan Air Force (PAF).
Notably, Indian military officials have repeatedly said that New Delhi was practically fighting a two-front war in May last year, as Pakistan was not only using Chinese weapons systems, but was also getting real-time intelligence and satellite support from Beijing.
For instance, Lt Gen Rahul R. Singh, Deputy Chief of Army Staff – Capability Development & Sustenance, said in July 2025, “We had one border and two adversaries… Pakistan was in the front. China was providing all possible support.”
“When the DGMO-level talks were on, Pakistan actually was mentioning that we know that your such and such vector is primed and ready for action, and we would request you to perhaps pull it back. So, he was getting live inputs from China,” he added.
He also warned that China was using Pakistan as a “live weapons lab.”
“China is using Pakistan like a live weapons laboratory… If you are to look at statistics, in the last five years, 81% of the military hardware that Pakistan is getting is all Chinese… China is able to test its weapons against other weapons.”
“China, of course, followed the good old dictum, kill with a borrowed knife. So, he would rather use the neighbor to cause pain than get involved in the mud-slinging match on the northern borders,” Lt. Gen. Rahul added.
Similarly, Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai, Deputy Chief of Army Staff and former DGMO, during his press conference on the one-year anniversary of Operation Sindoor, said, “Whether we are fighting against three adversaries on the same border, be it Turkey, China, or Pakistan, you play against the team that turns up on the park.”
However, Indian claims were mostly rejected by Islamabad and Beijing.
This is perhaps the first official acknowledgment by China that its support staff was physically present on Pakistani military bases during the four-day war in May 2025.
On May 7, China’s state broadcaster CCTV aired an interview with Zhang Heng, an engineer from the Aviation Industry Corporation of China’s (AVIC) Chengdu Aircraft Design and Research Institute, a key developer of China’s advanced fighter aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicle design.
Zhang had provided technical support to Pakistan during the four-day war last May.
Pakistan Air Force (PAF) operates two fighter jets, the J-10CE and the JF-17 Thunder, designed and developed by Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (CAC), a subsidiary of the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC). The JF-17 is a joint venture, with significant production and assembly also carried out by the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC).
The PAF operates 36 J-10CE fighter jets and over 150 JF-17 Thunder.
Notably, Pakistan is the only country to operate the export version of China’s 4.5-generation J-10C fighter jet.
Zhang said: “At the support base, we frequently heard the roar of fighter jets taking off and the constant wail of air-raid sirens. By late morning, in May, the temperature was already approaching 50 degrees Celsius [122 degrees Fahrenheit]. It was a real ordeal for us, both mentally and physically.”
What drove his team was the “desire to do an even better job with on‑site support” and to ensure their equipment could “truly perform at its full combat potential,” Zhang told CCTV.
“That wasn’t just a recognition of the J‑10CE; it was also a testament to the deep bond we formed through working side by side, day in and day out,” Zhang was quoted as saying by the South China Morning Post (SCMP).
Xu Da, another employee from the Chengdu Aircraft Design and Research Institute who also provided on-site support to Pakistan during the war, compared the fighter jet to a “child.”
“We nurtured it, cared for it, and finally handed it over to the user. And now, it was facing a major test,” Xu said.
“As for the outstanding results the J-10CE achieved, we weren’t very surprised, and it didn’t feel sudden at all.
“In fact, it felt inevitable. The aircraft just needed the right opportunity. And when that moment came, it delivered exactly as we knew it would.”
This is the first confirmation that Chinese engineers and support staff were present on the ground, including on Pakistani military bases, during the four-day war with India last year.
These statements confirm the allegations made by Indian military officials since last year that India was practically fighting a two-front war during Operation Sindoor last year.
After the war, Pakistan claimed that it shot down seven Indian fighter jets, including four Rafales.
India has acknowledged operational losses but refused to provide details on which fighter jets were shot down and how many. Meanwhile, New Delhi also claimed that it damaged at least 13 Pakistani aircraft, both in the air and on the ground.
Later research by foreign think tanks suggested that both India and Pakistan lost multiple jets; however, it was not possible to pinpoint with certainty which country lost how many.
However, notwithstanding the lack of credible evidence, China seized on Pakistani claims that China’s J-10CE fighter jet shot down multiple Indian Rafale fighter jets.
The claim was significant because, until 2025, China’s J-10CE fighter jet had never been combat-tested. On the other hand, the French-made Rafale, in service for over two decades, has never been shot down in combat.
Pakistan’s claims provided China with a rare opportunity to assert that its fighter jets were better than the French Rafale, which not only costs more than double that of the J-10CE but has also been a spectacular success in the export market.
However, despite these bombastic claims, the J-10CE has not achieved much success in the lucrative fighter jet market.
Even after one year, Pakistan remains the only export customer of the fighter jet. While Bangladesh and Indonesia are reportedly in advanced stages of talks, no new deal has been signed in the last year, despite the J-10CE’s competitive price.
On the other hand, in February this year, India’s Defense Acquisition Council (DAC) gave Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) for an additional 114 Rafale fighter jets for the Indian Air Force in a deal that could cost as much as US$40 billion.
Indonesia is also considering placing a follow-up order for Rafale jets.
Besides, Ukraine and Canada are exploring the purchase of Rafale jets, and the UAE is in talks to co-finance the development of the Rafale F5.
These developments show that, notwithstanding Pakistani and Chinese propaganda, Rafale has not lost its competitiveness in the export market, whereas the J-10CE is still struggling to get new customers.
- Sumit Ahlawat has over a decade of experience in news media. He has worked with Press Trust of India, Times Now, Zee News, Economic Times, and Microsoft News. He holds a Master’s Degree in International Media and Modern History from the University of Sheffield, UK.
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- He can be reached at ahlawat.sumit85 (at) gmail.com
